Christian Ultimate Moral Belief
Posted: Thu Mar 12, 2015 6:00 pm
I think the Christian ultimate moral belief can be stated as:
We should actively love God, all persons, and all parts of God’s creation, where the verb love means acting only to promote the well-being of the thing loved.
I think this Christian ultimate moral belief clearly supports the Rational Ethical Ultimate Ethical Principle (REUEP) of Humanianity. Except for addition of the concept of God, I think this belief means essentially the same things as the REUEP. This belief also adds loving all the universe, not just all persons. Restating the Christian ultimate moral belief without mentioning God and the universe, I get:
We should actively love all persons, where the verb love means acting only to promote the well-being of the person loved.
Commentary
I think most Christians believe that God is embodied in all parts of God’s creation, including in all persons. Therefore, the primary way to love God is to love all persons and all parts of God’s creation. Loving all persons includes accepting all persons and promoting equal treatment of all persons, now and future. Loving all persons includes loving oneself, partly to support one’s loving other persons.
As a Christian, I believe in a God of love based on God’s revelation to people through Jesus Christ, as recorded in the (Protestant) Bible. I believe that the Bible as a whole reveals this God of unlimited love, who wants believers to actively love God and all persons. More specifically, I believe that Jesus and the Bible clearly promote actively accepting all persons and equally treating all persons, now and future.
I believe in this God of love primarily because I choose to do so, finding this belief to be helpful to me and others, and be logically the best I have encountered. I do NOT believe primarily because God, Jesus, or the Bible tell me that I should believe this.
I think many Christians would accept this statement of the Christian ultimate moral belief. Of course, many Christians would use somewhat different words. However, I think most corresponding Christian statements would mean essentially the same things, and also mean essentially the same things as the REUEP.
The Bible and Jesus also state that the most of our ability and motivation for following this Christian ultimate moral belief come from a transformation or change within a person. This transformation is from being centered on the self, to being centered on God and love. The Bible and Jesus go so far as to say that this love cannot be accomplished using only the human mind and will, without transformation.
Definition of ultimate moral belief
By moral belief, I mean a belief that states something which I should (or should not) do, that I think is very likely true. I use the word moral because it is not limited to actions that affect persons. By ultimate moral belief, I mean the most general moral belief that I have thought of, which cannot be logically supported by a more general belief. This ultimate moral belief can and should be used to derive and justify more specific beliefs (such as Do Not Kill.)
Related definitions from Wiktionary:
belief: (noun) Mental acceptance of a claim as likely true.
ethical: (adjective) Morally approvable, when referring to an action that affects others; good.
moral: (adjective) Conforming to a standard of right behavior; sanctioned by or operative on one's conscience or ethical judgment.
motivation: (noun) An incentive or reason for doing something.
rational: (adjective) Logically sound; not contradictory or otherwise absurd.
should: (verb) Be obliged to; have an obligation to; ought to.
ultimate: (adjective) Being the greatest possible; maximum; most extreme.
Other definitions of love
I use the word “love” because it is almost universally used in Christianity. However, since love has multiple meanings, I include a definition that is more specific and active than typical dictionary definitions, such as:
Definition from Wiktionary:
love: (verb) To care deeply about, to be dedicated to (someone or something).
Definition from Westminster Dictionary of Theological Terms, by Donald K. McKim
love: (Greek: agape) Strong feeling of personal affection, care, and desire for the well-being of others.
Somewhere I read a definition of “love” as:
love: (verb) To will the best for another (person)
• I assume the word “best” is here referring to the best available alternative known to the loving person.
• I assume the word “will” is here referring to (some degree of) free will by which a person can choose an action that can affect the other person, or to prefer the best in the absence of the ability to affect the other person.
I also read the 20 page articles on “love” in the Anchor Bible Dictionary 1992. These articles indicate that “love” is best seen in the human love between parent and child, or between husband and wife (as equals). Some of the qualities of love mentioned are kindness, mercy, devotion, and loyalty.
We should actively love God, all persons, and all parts of God’s creation, where the verb love means acting only to promote the well-being of the thing loved.
I think this Christian ultimate moral belief clearly supports the Rational Ethical Ultimate Ethical Principle (REUEP) of Humanianity. Except for addition of the concept of God, I think this belief means essentially the same things as the REUEP. This belief also adds loving all the universe, not just all persons. Restating the Christian ultimate moral belief without mentioning God and the universe, I get:
We should actively love all persons, where the verb love means acting only to promote the well-being of the person loved.
Commentary
I think most Christians believe that God is embodied in all parts of God’s creation, including in all persons. Therefore, the primary way to love God is to love all persons and all parts of God’s creation. Loving all persons includes accepting all persons and promoting equal treatment of all persons, now and future. Loving all persons includes loving oneself, partly to support one’s loving other persons.
As a Christian, I believe in a God of love based on God’s revelation to people through Jesus Christ, as recorded in the (Protestant) Bible. I believe that the Bible as a whole reveals this God of unlimited love, who wants believers to actively love God and all persons. More specifically, I believe that Jesus and the Bible clearly promote actively accepting all persons and equally treating all persons, now and future.
I believe in this God of love primarily because I choose to do so, finding this belief to be helpful to me and others, and be logically the best I have encountered. I do NOT believe primarily because God, Jesus, or the Bible tell me that I should believe this.
I think many Christians would accept this statement of the Christian ultimate moral belief. Of course, many Christians would use somewhat different words. However, I think most corresponding Christian statements would mean essentially the same things, and also mean essentially the same things as the REUEP.
The Bible and Jesus also state that the most of our ability and motivation for following this Christian ultimate moral belief come from a transformation or change within a person. This transformation is from being centered on the self, to being centered on God and love. The Bible and Jesus go so far as to say that this love cannot be accomplished using only the human mind and will, without transformation.
Definition of ultimate moral belief
By moral belief, I mean a belief that states something which I should (or should not) do, that I think is very likely true. I use the word moral because it is not limited to actions that affect persons. By ultimate moral belief, I mean the most general moral belief that I have thought of, which cannot be logically supported by a more general belief. This ultimate moral belief can and should be used to derive and justify more specific beliefs (such as Do Not Kill.)
Related definitions from Wiktionary:
belief: (noun) Mental acceptance of a claim as likely true.
ethical: (adjective) Morally approvable, when referring to an action that affects others; good.
moral: (adjective) Conforming to a standard of right behavior; sanctioned by or operative on one's conscience or ethical judgment.
motivation: (noun) An incentive or reason for doing something.
rational: (adjective) Logically sound; not contradictory or otherwise absurd.
should: (verb) Be obliged to; have an obligation to; ought to.
ultimate: (adjective) Being the greatest possible; maximum; most extreme.
Other definitions of love
I use the word “love” because it is almost universally used in Christianity. However, since love has multiple meanings, I include a definition that is more specific and active than typical dictionary definitions, such as:
Definition from Wiktionary:
love: (verb) To care deeply about, to be dedicated to (someone or something).
Definition from Westminster Dictionary of Theological Terms, by Donald K. McKim
love: (Greek: agape) Strong feeling of personal affection, care, and desire for the well-being of others.
Somewhere I read a definition of “love” as:
love: (verb) To will the best for another (person)
• I assume the word “best” is here referring to the best available alternative known to the loving person.
• I assume the word “will” is here referring to (some degree of) free will by which a person can choose an action that can affect the other person, or to prefer the best in the absence of the ability to affect the other person.
I also read the 20 page articles on “love” in the Anchor Bible Dictionary 1992. These articles indicate that “love” is best seen in the human love between parent and child, or between husband and wife (as equals). Some of the qualities of love mentioned are kindness, mercy, devotion, and loyalty.